Vacuum churn



June 2, 1942. R, D, PIKE, 2,285,124

vAcUM cHURN l Filed Nov. 14, 1938 IN VEN TOR. e. ab.

Patented June 2, 1942 UNITED STATE s sra-ar VACUUM CHURN Robert D. Pike, Piedmont, Calif., assigner toV A. W. Stitt, San Francisco, Calif.

Application November 14, 1938, Serial No. 240,291

3 Claims.

also be applied to a cylindrical type of churn having internal workers which revolve with the churn, and will be shown and described herein in its application to both these types.

It is the object of the invention to provide simple and effective means for producing low pressurev or partial vacuum within a churn, and for varying the pressure within the churn at will during the churning operation and without drawing out any of the liquid or solid matter that is being churned. l

Further objects and advantages of the invention will be made apparent in the following specification, wherein reference is'made to the accompanying drawing:

Fig. 1 is a front elevation with parts shown in section of a cubical churn embodying the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal section of a cylindrical churn of the type carrying Workers which revolve'with the cylinder and interior thereof, and illustrates the manner in which the invention is applied to this type of churn, and

Fig. 3 is a transverse section taken on the lineA III-III of Fig. 2.

Referring first to Fig. 1 of the drawing, a cubical churn is illustrated at I0. This churn Ill, as is common practice, is supported for rotation on an axis which passes through two of its oppositefor the application of bearing flanges thereto, in

' the manner illustrated in the drawing. A drive indicated at I9 and a vset screw Illav extends through the bracket and engages the pipe I6 normally to prevent rotation thereof, but to permit slight adjustment of the rpositionr of v.the pipe when desired for purposes hereinafter to be set forth in detail. 'Ihe'pipell communicates'with a vacuum pump, not shown, and a valve 2G in this pipe controls communication between the vacuum pump and the interior of the churn. A ventrpipe is preferably tapped into the pipe I6 intermediate the valve 2li and the churn and is controlled by avalve 2| which serves to admit atmospheric pressureto the interior of the churn when deshaft Il is secured by one of said flanges to one corner of the churn I0 and is rotatably supported in a bearing I2, so that power may be applied from a source, not shown, through the medium of a drive pulley I3 affixed to the shaft to impart rotation to the churn. At its opposite end the churn I0 is provided with a hollow shaft I4 rotatably supported in a suitable bearing I5. A pipe I6 which is normally secured against rotation extends through the hollow bearing I5 concentrically therewith to communicate with the interior of the churn, and preferably a stuffing box I'I is provided with a gland I8 for preventing leakage between the interior surface of the rotating bearing I4 and the exterior surface of the non-rotatable pipe I6. The pipe I6 is supported and maintained in alignment by a bracket At the inner end of the pipe I5 which communicates with thev interior of the churn a iitting Ia is provided to extend inwardly and upwardly of the churn in a position where it will be free from interference by the wallsV of the churn as it rotates, and in a position such that its upper end will be well above the level of any liquid matter in the churn; the upper end of the iitting I6a may also be curved to point downwardly, thus to prevent any possibility of liquid which is splattered within the churn from entering the fitting yand passing through the vacuum pipe I6.

In operation the churn is partially filled with cream through an air-tight door 23a, shown in Fig. 3, and while the churn is at rest it is apparent that the cream level will be horizontal and below `the inlet end of the itting I6a which leads to the vacuumpipe. As the churn is rotated, however, there is a tendency for the liquid level thereinto vary from the horizontal and to assume an angle which is determined by the direction and speed of rotation of the churn. It is therefore desirable, in order that the inlet end of the fitting Iiia be as far as possible from the liquid contents of the churn, that this fitting be adjustable to an angle which varies from the vertical position. To obtain this adjustment, the set screw I9a may be loosened and the pipe I6 turned till the fitting assumes the proper angle and the fitting may be secured in this position by again tightening the set screw. As the churn is put into operation, the vacuum is increased until it reaches the desired maximum, at which time the valve 20 may be closed, and when the churning operation is completed the vacuum may be released by opening the vent valve 2 I, thus making it possible to open the door of the churn and remove the contents therefrom.

Referring to the form of the invention illustrated in Fig. 2, the body of the churn is shown as a cylindrical metallic casing, generally indicated at 22, which is provided with a lining wall 23. In this churn worker shelves 24, the positions of which are best illustrated in Fig. 3, eX- tend between the Vends of the churn and rotate therewith, while a Worker 25 is supported for rotation concentrically of the churn and in a direction opposite thereto. The Worker 25 is driven by a shaft 26 and pulley 21, the shaft 26 being concentric to the shaft 28, which in this form of the invention corresponds to the shaft illustrated in Fig. 1. At its opposite end the cylindrical churn is supported in the same manner as the cubical churn shown inFig. 1 and the vacuum pipe Il?b is identical in construction and in function to the churn in Fig. 1, with the exception that at its inner end the fitting Itl is eliminated because of the fact that it would interfereV with the movements of the worker shelves 24 and worker 25. Instead of the tting Ita the inner end of the pipe I6b in Fig. 2 is provided with a disk 30 which is recessed into the end wall of the churn and which has a port 3| extending therethrough at an angle to form a communication between the interior of the churn and the interior of the pipe |61. The disk 30 is also provided with a central recess which receives and forms a bearing for a journal 32 projecting from the end of the Worker 25.

In the operation of this latter form of the invention, the churn and worker shelves rotate in the direction of the arrow a in Fig. 3, while the worker 25 rotates in the direction of arrow b. The result of this operation is to cause the liquid and semi-solids within the churn to gather more at one side than at the other, and consequently by rotational adjustment of the pipe IB? as permitted by loosening and tightening the set screw I9a the end of the port 3| which communicates with the interior of the churn and which is shown at its highest position in Fig. 3, may be regulated as to position so as to reduce to a minimum any possibility of matter entering the vacuum pipe IBb. By forming the disk 30 of relatively fiat shape and positioning the end of the worker 25 as closely thereto as possible, the adjustable port 3| is available with little or no loss of Working eiciency within the churn.

While certain features of the invention are set forth more or less specifically herein, it should be understood that the foregoing description is illustrative only and that the invention is limited only by the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. The combination with a rotatable churn of means for effecting a partial vacuum therein during rotation, comprising a vacuum conduit eX- tending into the churn concentric with its aXis of rotation, a continuation of said conduit extending to a point above the normal liquid level in the churn, and means for supporting said conduit and permitting adjustment of the angle of the continued portion of said conduit to position its open end in an area free from liquid during rotation of the churn.

2. In a churn of the character described means for effecting partial vacuum during churning, which comprises a hollow shaft .supporting the churn for rotation, a vacuum conduit extending through said shaft and into the churn, a tting on the inner end of said conduit extending upwardly inside the churn, means supporting and permitting adjustment of the conduit to vary the position of said fitting, and means' to secure it in its adjusted position.

3. In a churn of the character described, means for effecting partial Vacuum during churning which comprises a hollow shaft supporting the churn for rotation, a vacuum conduit extending through said shaft and into the churn and having an opening communicating with the interior of the Ychurn at a point eccentric to the shaft, and means supporting said conduit and permitting rotation of the conduit whereby the position of said opening may be adjusted to a desired level within the churn. f

ROBERT D. PIKE. 

